‘Strange Fruit’ by Dorsa Asadi at the Green Art Gallery Dubai

In Dorsa Asadi’s solo show titled “Strange Fruit,” at the Green Art Gallery, the emotional experience of living through recent unrest in Iran is depicted using a three-part narrative structure inspired by Dante’s Divine Comedy. The main characters, Elle and Belle, symbolise the younger generation (Gen Z) who are shaping society. Growing up in Iran, the artist was taught that following gender norms leads to paradise. However, Asadi’s works suggest that alternative paths and languages exist.

Dorsa Asadi, Claimant or frightened, will burn together baby, 2022 Ceramics, Approx. 26 x 37 x 33 cm. Photo by Anna Shtraus, Courtesy of the Artist and Green Art Gallery, Dubai

The first part of the narrative, corresponding to Dante’s Inferno, reflects the fires of the recent unrest. The artwork features a high-contrast palette of reds, representing anger. The Chenar trees and Nargis flowers bleed bloody tears and threaten faceless men, symbolising a struggle for power and submission. Despite pleas for mercy, represented by supplicating chenars, the flames persist. This chapter also references droughts and farmer protests in Iran, emphasizing the Earth’s anger alongside human emotions.

In the second part, corresponding to Dante’s Purgatory, a sense of alienation and mistrust emerges. The artwork loses colour, mirroring the participants’ diminishing hope. However, the men are no longer depicted as antagonists. It seems as if they have been purified by the fire and healed by the Nargis blooms. Figures become part of the landscape, sinking into the soil and water, symbolising the lingering impact of the Iranian Revolution.

Dorsa Asadi, Strange Fruit. Installation view at Green Art Gallery, Dubai, 2023. Photo by Anna Shtraus

The narrative also explores generational rebellion against patriarchy, capitalism, and religious control over women’s bodies and nature. The domestication of women parallels the domestication of land, transforming both into controlled entities for reproduction and labour. Asadi traces this history through the story of Ishtar, an ancient goddess whose sexuality was suppressed. However, in Asadi’s Paradiso, the domination is disrupted. Humans and plants mutate together, supporting each other and coexisting in a vibrant, taboo-free environment.

“Strange Fruit” presents a powerful narrative of resilience, rebellion, and the search for alternative paths to liberation. Asadi’s artwork captures the emotional turmoil, societal challenges, and hope for a transformed future in the aftermath of unrest in Iran.

Dorsa Asadi, Blooming and resting Sugarmen, 2023 Ceramics, 34 x 27 x 32 cm, Photo by Anna Shtraus. Courtesy of the Artist and Green Art Gallery, Dubai

About Dorsa Asadi

Born in 1992 in Tehran, Iran, the artist Asadi holds a Master’s degree in Painting (2017) and a Bachelor’s degree in Handicrafts (2014) from the University of Tehran. She has participated in residencies at the Helikon Art Center in Turkey in 2019 and the Vayu Art and Mind Residency in Kashan, Iran in 2022.

Asadi has showcased her work in various solo exhibitions, including “Strange Fruit” at the Green Art Gallery in Dubai, UAE (2023), “Balneum Mariae” at the Azad Art Gallery in Tehran, Iran (2022), and “Elle and Belle a Tale with No Rise and Fall” also at the Azad Art Gallery in Tehran, Iran (2019).

Location: The Green Art Gallery

Date: 17 May –  29 July 2023

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